Pepsi Next Product Review

Soda. Pop. Whatever you call it...I am addicted to it!  In fact, I am not sure I could go a day without it.  This is a problem, especially when I am trying to lose the baby weight...still.   You can imagine how excited I was to receive the Pepsi Next Bzz Kit in the mail for me to review!

My Bzz Kit consisted of a 12 ounce can of Pepsi Next, a coupon for a Free 2-Liter, and several coupons to share with others. Pepsi Next is the latest version of Pepsi, but with 60% less sugar.  I was excited to try it out! 

It didn't take me long to down the can of Pepsi Next.  I admit,  I was expecting a more "diet-y" taste, but as promised it tasted like regular Pepsi! And without the yucky aftertaste from other Diet sodas.   I enjoyed the taste, but couldn't help but wonder... How do they do this?  A quick glance at the ingredients and you will see that it still contains sweeteners such as high fructose corn syrup and aspartame.  I am not a huge fan of artificial sweeteners, but I figure this is still a better alternative to the hundreds of calories that I am wasting each day on my soda.

What to know more about Pepsi Next?  Visit its facebook page.  Also, if you are super nice to me, I may have a coupon or two to share.

Note:  As a Bzz Agent, I was given the products for free to review.  My review is my honest opinion, and I was not paid for it. 

It may be the hardest job, but it's the best job.

Monday afternoon I made a quick trip to CVS to take advantage of the great Huggies deal.   I usually try to make trips to the stores by myself after my children are in bed, but lately I just haven't had the energy.  Every time I go to the store, it's a struggling with Little Bro.  He is always wanting to push the cart, walk on his own, open the doors, etc.  This is always a problem because he runs the carts into things, or gets mad when the doors open automatically before he gets there.  If things don't go his way, then we start melting down.  My little trip to CVS was no exception.  As I got to the counter to check out, he was trying to leave the store with my unpaid diapers.  I fought with him to put the diapers on the counter.   The girl behind the counter just smiled and said, "You just look exhausted!"  I smiled and said, "Yes, yes, I am."  She proceeded to tell me that she was pregnant with her first child and her boyfriend was so excited for it, but she wasn't sure.  I tried to sound convincing and said, "It is very hard, but you'll love being a mommy."  I am not sure that convinced her.

Tuesday morning, I woke up exhausted (not even sure how that happens).  Baby Sis woke up early and I tried to cuddle up on the couch with her and watch the Today Show before the boys woke.  That didn't last long.  She is at the stage where she is getting into everything.  The boys woke, were fed, dressed and we were trying to get out the door to go to my mom's and I was distracted by the commercial that was on the TV.  It was the latest P&G commercial for the Olympics.  I am not sure if it was my exhaustion, the music or what, but I burst into tears.  Big Brother asked, "what's wrong mommy?".  I replied, "Nothing honey, sometimes mommies cry because they love their children so much."  That was a good enough answer for him.

This morning, I woke with a little more energy.  I also woke with a new attitude.  I know that today I may not get all the laundry done, cut & sort the huge stack of coupons on my kitchen table, or scrub the pee-stained toilets.  I may not work on the three projects that I promised other friends that I would do.  I may not do a single thing for my Thirty One Business. But, One thing I know for sure that I will do today is be a good mom.  I will snuggle with them on the couch and read books.  I will make a farm with the boys in the sandbox.  I will let baby sis crawl all over me, pull my hair and laugh & dance with her.   And I will not feel one bit guilty about getting absolutely nothing done.

Whatcha Eatin'?: Week of April 30th

I meant to have this posted yesterday.  However, our Monday morning started a bit more chaotic than I would have liked.   Instead of the alarm blaring at 5:30 a.m. like normal, we heard a sweet little girl babbling in her crib at 6:21 a.m.  My hubby shot out of bed, rushed around like a madman trying to get ready for work.  He normally leaves for work at 6:30.  So instead of having a little downtime to sit and enjoy the quiet morning and blog a bit, I was rushing around trying to help him and take care of Baby Sis.  This morning was a lot better, so I thought I'd share our menu for the week.


Sunday night we enjoyed a bowl of Broccoli Cheese Soup with Hot Ham & Cheese Sandwiches.  It was perfect for the cool evening!  My husband loved the soup so much that he devoured the rest of it after he came home from work Monday evening. 

While he enjoyed the soup, the boys and I tried the Pizza Casserole that I have been hearing about on the blogs and pinterest.  The boys loved it.  It was simple to make and yummy, but I would have made mine a bit cheesier. 

Here is what I have planned for the rest of the week:

Tuesday:  Creamy Italian Chicken in Crock Pot, Noodles, Green Beans, Salad

Wednesday:  Taco Filled Pasta Shells, Mixed Fruit

Thursday:  One Dish Stuffing Dish, Mashed Potatoes, Corn, Rolls 

Friday:  Hamburgers on the Grill, Baked Beans, Cottage Cheese, Cheesy Potatoes

Saturday:  Stir Fry, Rice 

I am linking this up with other bloggers at Organizing Junkie's Blog...Join Me!  

The Best Making-Up-Songs Mama

Do you ever have those nights where you sit down exhausted after a day of running after the kiddos and you wonder if you are doing enough?  Did you teach them enough?  Did you discipline them enough?  Did you love them enough?  I felt like this Monday Night, and for some reason I stumbled upon this blog.  It was exactly what I needed at the moment.  The writer of this particular post, Sarah Mae, encouraged the readers to share what they felt they did well as a Mama.  So I thought I'd share with you.  I am the Best Making-Up-Songs Mama.

It all started when Big Bro moved from the crib to the toddler bed.  He was a bit nervous to be sleeping without the comfort of the sides of the crib, so I started soothing him to sleep with songs.  We first started with some old favorites: Jesus Loves Me, O Be Careful Little Eyes What You See,  and This Little Light of Mine.  Before too long, Big Bro was ready to start making his own little requests.  He didn't quite understand why I didn't know any tractor or windmill songs, so instead of disappointing him I started making them up.   Two years later, there is not a song that this Mama doesn't know.  Also, we end each nightly singing session with the boys' favorite, The Windmill Song.  It goes a little something like this...

Windmills, Windmills going round and round, 

Windmills, Windmills way up high off the ground. 

Windmills, Windmills with your blinking red lights, 

That's when we know it's time to go night, night. 

Windmills, Windmills, powered by the wind. 

Windmills, Windmills you would make a good friend. 

Windmills, Windmills way up high in the sky, 

Windmills, Windmills wave to the planes going by. 

Windmills, Windmills spinning round and round, 

Windmills, Windmills way up high off the ground. 

Windmills, Windmills with your blinking red lights, 

That's when we know it's time to say Good Night, Sleep Tight...Don't let the bed bugs bite!

Yes, Yes, I know isn't it just the greatest?  Okay, so a bit cheesy, but I know this will be a special memory for my boys.  It makes me feel just a bit better as a mom that they will someday be singing "The Windmill Song" to their kiddos.  What are you good at Mamas?  Please share!!! I would love to hear all about it! 

***If you want to know a little more about the windmill obsession in our family read this post.

Whatcha Eatin'? Monday, April 23rd

Last week was a bust.  I didn't even plan a menu because I had a sick kiddo.  I felt completely unorganized and we ate out...twice. That is BAD!  This week, I am ready with a plan.  We are getting ready to have a garage sale on Friday & Saturday, so we are making this an easy week.  With the exception of Saturday, when we are having my parents over for dinner.   Hope you have a fabulous week! 

Sunday:  Meatloaf, Party Potatoes, Corn, Rolls

Monday: Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo (using this recipe, but switching the tortellini for Fettuccine since we have that on hand and tortellini is so stinkin' expensive), Salad

Tuesday: Tacos, Mixed Fruit


Wednesday: Brown Sugar Chicken, Baby Red Potatoes, Green Beans, Rolls

Thursday:  BBQ Beef Sandwiches, Veggies & Dip, Chips

Friday:  Frozen Pizza...My Specialty! 


Saturday:  Steak, Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Green Beans, Salad, Rolls, Key Lime Pie for dessert (My mom's favorite.)

I am linking this up at Organizing Junkie's Blog.  Join Me!  Have a great week!  

What We've Been Up To

You probably are wondering were I went to. I am still here.  It's just been super crazy around here. We have had all kinds of fun and not-so-fun stuff going on.

We celebrated our sweet little baby boy's 3rd birthday.  He was loving all the attention he was getting, but he wasn't liking all the pictures I was taking.

 The little stinker would not smile at me!  

For some reason any time we have a birthday in our household, someone ends up sick.  Not sure if it's too much excitement or too much ice cream, but Big Brother had a stomach bug the next day and spent most of the day on the couch.  Luckily, it didn't seem to spread.  

Sad, but kinda cute.  

We followed up the sickness with a good house cleaning and de-cluttering for the upcoming garage sales. 

 Baby Sis was a big help! 

Hopefully, this week we can get back to some normalcy and I can get a little blogging in.  Not sure, my "To Do" list is looking pretty long.  Have a great week! 

Whatcha Eatin'?: Monday, April 8th

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!  We enjoyed time at my in-laws house.  My father-in-law is a former chef so we get really lucky and never have to do much of the cooking.  This year I did bring a Cookies & Cream Dessert which was delicious.  (Un)Fortunately we have a little leftover, which is not good for my diet.  We were also lucky enough to bring home some leftover chicken which I will be using this week for a couple of my meals.

Here is what I came up with for this week:

Monday:  Taco Casserole, Applesauce

Tuesday:   Chicken & Noodles, Mashed Potatoes, Corn


Wednesday:  Slow Cooker Pot Roast, Rolls

Thursday:  Chicken Quesadillas, Mixed Fruit

Friday:  Domino's Pizza (Got a Free Artisan Pizza here today!)

Saturday:  Cheeseburgers, Cheesy Potatoes, Baked Beans, Veggies & Dip 

Join me and link up at Organizing Junkie's Blog.  Have a great week!